A HEALTHCARE group, with a hospital in Wirral, is expanding its nursing apprenticeship programme.

Spire Healthcare is expanding its programme with 25 new roles across 16 of Spire’s English hospitals.

The new apprentices will join the six apprentices already at Spire Murrayfield Hospital in Barnston.

Spire’s nurse degree apprenticeship is a four-year programme leading to a BSc in Adult Nursing.

The new apprentices will enjoy remote studying with The University of Sunderland, as well as placements in a range of nursing settings such as wards, outpatients, operating theatres, hospices, A&E and more.

By developing new knowledge, skills and thinking whilst completing their degree, Spire’s nursing apprentices will gain a broad experience of healthcare in England and be well-prepared for their future nursing career.

The benefit of the degree apprenticeship route is the ability to earn while learning, with a starting salary of approximately £21,000 depending on previous experience.

Professor Lisa Grant, Group Clinical Director and Chief Nurse of Spire Healthcare, said: "We are incredibly proud to launch our 2023 nurse degree apprenticeship training programme. Our four-year partnership with The University of Sunderland has already provided hundreds of school leavers, university graduates and people looking to retrain, the opportunity to earn while they learn, and we’re pleased to be extending this programme even further.

"While national shortages in healthcare professionals are still a concern for all healthcare providers in England, continued investment in our nursing apprenticeship programme - one of the largest of a single organisation in England - is aimed at building a talent pipeline for our business and the broader healthcare sector. Importantly, this programme contributes to the sustainability of the whole healthcare sector in the UK, because many of our graduates will go on to careers in the NHS and elsewhere – something we encourage as a net contributor to society.

"Nurses have a vital role in delivering care and support to patients while in and out of hospital and this apprenticeship programme helps introduce more people into the profession."

To be eligible to join Spire’s 2023 nursing apprenticeship programme, applicants should be available to start on December 11 2023 and meet the following criteria:

  • be a Health Care assistant with a minimum of either:
  • NVQ L3 Health and Social Care
  • BTEC L3 ext. diploma
  • L3 Advanced Apprenticeship
  • HE Diploma (access to HE- Nursing)
  • have GCSE Maths and English qualifications at a minimum of Grade C or equivalent and;
  • have 548 hours in supervised clinical practice.

More information about the programme and links to the application form can be found here.